Peterson Family Cemetery
Fort Worth, Tarrant County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Swedish native John Peterson (1840-1925) came to the United States in 1868. His wife, Thilda (Mossberg) (1848-1912), joined him two years later. They lived in Nebraska before coming to Texas in 1872. Peterson acquired several hundred acres in this part of Tarrant County and made his living by farming the land. His granddaughter Grace (1902-1903) was the first to be buried in this cemetery plot set aside for the family. A reminder of Tarrant County's early Swedish settlements, the Peterson Family Cemetery contains a total of ten graves. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836-1986.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Swedish immigrant John Peterson crossed the Atlantic in 1868, followed two years later by his wife Thilda, and after a spell in Nebraska the couple reached Tarrant County in 1872. Peterson farmed several hundred acres, and when his infant granddaughter Grace died in 1903 she became the first laid to rest in a family plot that now holds ten graves. The small cemetery stands as a marker of the area's early Swedish settlement.
Why it matters
This modest family plot testifies to the Scandinavian immigrants who helped farm North Texas, a reminder that the state's settlement drew on newcomers from across northern Europe as well as the American South.
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Related people
- · John Peterson
- · Thilda Peterson
Themes & tags
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